Eaton, Dover, and Ingersoll Rand - Oh My!

Strong third quarter earnings are only going to go so far to reassure people about the health of the economy. After all, earnings reports are historical documents, and Wall Street is always trying to see the future. That said, the reports from three major industrial conglomerates - Eaton (NYSE:ETN), Dover (NYSE:DOV), and Ingersoll Rand (NYSE:IR) - reflect some relatively common themes. Non-residential construction is still moribund (and dead-weight on the recovery), but heavy industry and electronics are definitely coming back, and strong overseas markets are a major asset to internationally diversified companies. 

Three Quarters in Brief
Eaton reported third quarter revenue growth of 18%, with near-record operating margins at the segment level. The electrical systems category was a laggard (with revenue growth of "just" 12%), while hydraulics and trucks were both up better than 30%.

Dover saw organic revenue growth of 25%, with double-digit performance across the board. The engineered systems segment grew slowest (if 16% growth can be called slow), while fluid management grew 32% and electronic technologies revenue was up 41%. Margins were up strongly in every segment but engineered systems (where margin declined), with fluid management and electronic technologies margins both improving by nearly five percentage points.

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